English Historical Pragmatics

EDINBURGH TEXTBOOKS ON THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE - ADVANCED Series editor: Heinz Giegerich Books in this series provide readers with a detailed description and explanation of key areas of English Language study. The authors presuppose a basic working knowledge of the topic and explore aspects of the linguistics of English for an intermediate or advanced student readership. English Historical Pragmatics Andreas H. Jucker and Irma Taavitsainen 'This much needed book could not have been written by two more qualified people, and they do not disappoint. Surveying a broad panorama of micro and macro phenomena, they gently guide the reader through historical pragmatics, skilfully negotiating complex theories and illuminating numerous examples. This book lends definition to the field; it will be a landmark in its development.' Jonathan Culpeper, Professor of English Language and Linguistics, Lancaster University Historical pragmatics is an emerging branch within linguistics and one of the most versatile fields in the historical study of English, placed at the intersection between pragmatics, historical linguistics and neighbouring disciplines like (historical) sociolinguistics. It is at such interfaces where exciting new developments take place. English Historical Pragmatics introduces this field to advanced linguistic students coming to the topic for the first time. It critically evaluates data sources and methodological approaches and takes a broad social pragmatics approach to micro issues within historical pragmatics such as discourse markers, terms of address and actions performed through language. It also covers macro issues of genre, medical and news discourse and fictional literature, and it outlines the underlying principles of language change through grammaticalisation, subjectivisation and pragmaticalisation. With engaging examples throughout and thought-provoking student exercises, this advanced textbook provides students with a thorough grounding in historical pragmatics. Andreas H. Jucker is Professor of English Linguistics at the University of Zurich. Irma Taavitsainen is Professor of English Philology at the University of Helsinki. Cover design and illustration: riverdesign.co.uk [EUP logo] www.euppublishing.com